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Afroskull
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To Obscurity and Beyond
Self-Released
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The second release for New Orleans’ Afroskull, To Obscurity and Beyond (Skullsound records), is a beguiling listen. At its best, the virtuosity of guitarist and primary songwriter, Joe Scatassa, and the intricacy of his arrangements recall the more endearing aspects of 70s jazz fusion; music that is not dumbed down to pander to the dancefloor. Scatassa’s guitar and the keyboards of Matt Iselin are the foundation of a sound that is reminiscent of the grooviness of Return to Forever with the heaviness of Mahavishnu Orchestra - with a healthy dose of New Orleans funk thrown into the mix (kudos to the rhythm section in the latter regard). Unfortunately, there is an element of ham-handedness that creeps into certain numbers, whether it’s over the top vocals that overshadow the quality playing, or Scatassa straying from his atmospheric shredding to lay down the occasional ill-advised meathead chord progression or riff. Yet when the interplay between the band works (don’t sleep on that killer horn section), and it often does, Afroskull achieves lift-off to that heady galaxy of the rare band that’s playing can melt your face while keeping your hips moving. To obscurity and beyond indeed.